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The introduction of Intel’s Cedar Trail platform might spark some renewed interest in the netbook category, especially as buyers looking for an affordable and highly portable machine grapple with whether to overspend on a underpowered/under-equipped tablet PC, or really overspend on a newfangled Ultrabook.

The tablet PC market is really beginning to heat up now, and the Apple iPad at last seems to have some serious competition with regards to market dominance. Amazon has really thrown a spanner in the works with the release of the Kindle Fire, which may not have the specifications of the iPad but beats it hands down on price. Today we can tell you that the Sony Tablet S joins a growing list with a big price cut.

First-tier PC vendors Acer and Lenovo are set to launch table PCs based on Microsoft’s Windows 8 and Intel’s Clover Trail platform in the third quarter of 2012, according to sources from the upstream supply chain.

Intel is set to unveil its Medfield processor, designed specifically for Android-based smartphones and tablet PCs, in the first half of 2012. But as Medfield is eclipsed by ARM-based processors in terms of performance and power saving, PC players are putting more hope on Intel’s Clover Trail platform, the sources said.

Tablet PCs are a dying breed, and Windows 8 is still at least a year away. Until we see what Microsoft’s next operating system has to offer, one tablet PC shows us why this form factor is still a winner. Samsung’s Series 7 11.6” Slate breaks the mold.

We here at Mobile PC World wish you all a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year!